This invention relates generally to authenticating individuals using identity credentials, and more particularly, to a method and system for confirming the identity of a user in possession of a device.
Governments and private sector entities have been known to issue several different types of credentials. Generally, credentials are physical objects that include data stored therein that is used to prove the identity of an individual. For example, Governments have been known to issue primary identity credentials such as electronic-passports (e-passports), national identification (ID) cards, driver licenses, and entitlement cards that each contains biometric identity data. Private sector entities such as employers, airports authorities, and banks have been known to issue credentials such as employee identity cards, registered traveler cards, and banking cards, respectively, that each contain biometric identity data.
Individuals have been known to simultaneously carry several different biometric identity credentials such as e-passports, driver's licenses, entitlement cards, employee identity cards and physical access cards as separate individual biometric identity credentials. Moreover, several different versions of an individual's biometric data may be created and authorized by different independent entities because governments and private sector entities use different systems to create their own separate biometric identity credentials. Furthermore, these systems are generally not configured to communicate with each other or with credentials issued by a different system. As a result, the biometric identity data of one issuing entity's system is generally not recognizable by another entity's system. Thus, a credential issued by one entity may not be used by another entity to confirm the identity of the bearer of the credential.
Known methods and systems for issuing biometric identity credentials typically require that each issuing entity separately collect enrollment biometric data, use the data to perform large-scale identification (1:N) background searches across multiple databases, and issue a biometric identity credential that is compatible with the issuing entity's system. Thus, known methods may be costly due to significant investment in identity system infrastructure and continuing costs due to issuing, re-issuing and revoking credentials. Moreover, according to known methods, private sector entities duplicate government investment and effort when capturing and analyzing biometric data.